I know several women who are going through some kind of hardship right now (you may be one of them). These are women who seem to have been led into a wilderness (a dry, difficult place, filled with temptation, trials, and “snakes”). This is part of the journey, the current chapter God is writing in their lives. It’s not a fun vacation. There is no real roadmap for how to get through to the other side. However, the only way out is through. One of these young women was heavy on my heart as I began reading the first part of Chapter 4 of the book of Matthew. As I began to read about the Temptations of Jesus, I stopped as I read verse 1. The part that hit me, I will emphasize in bold font:
It rather surprised me that the Spirit often leads us into the wilderness. If so, then I figure it is with some great purpose in mind. That was true for Jesus. Must be true for us, too. I read the rest of that section, stopped to reflect, “pondered and stored,”some of my reflection in my journal, then wrote the following letter to this dear, dear young lady. Maybe you need these words, as well…
…reading through Matthew, I came to chapter 4, where I read Jesus is “led” by the Spirit into the wilderness… Of course, the omniscient Spirit knows that Jesus will be tempted there. Tempted, in his humanness to give up, to succumb to the desires of his human heart, and to live out the rest of his life pridefully self-seeking. I know that old hymn says, “All the way my Savior leads me…” So, I know that the Spirit will lead, even as he did Jesus into dry places (wildnernesses), and even difficult places (like the garden), and sometimes even to death (the crucifixion). But, I also know that no temptation is so great that the Spirit doesn’t allow for how much we can bear, and, then, provide an “escape”. For Jesus, the escape came as a WORD, which then allowed him to endure, be strengthened, and stand firm.
I have you much on my heart, with your current life circumstances. I know that it is a wilderness for you – a hard place – even a crucifixion of sorts, as you have to “die to dreams…” You aren’t alone there in that place – you have your family, and more than that, you have the Lord, who KNOWS, oh, how well He knows, what you are going through. So, my prayer for you is that you find your “escape”…whether it be a sense of the presence of the Lord in the midst, or a Word of encouragement that you can repeat over & over again, or a sense of the blessings He does provide, even there in the middle of the desert.
I am convinced of something else…God has a ministry for you bigger than you are, a ministry just like Jesus’. Jesus couldn’t go on and begin his mission until he went through the difficulty. You, either. You must go through it, so that you can come out on the other side, and be a “fisher of men.” Your pain will be heaven’s gain – I am certain of that fact. So, today I am praying for you to find your “escape.” Jesus knew his God, knew his mission, and knew the Word that would sustain. As you reflect on these things, I pray you find God’s place for you in this current wilderness…
I pray the same for all of us as we go through those very difficult, dry spots on this journey called life…